DOCUMENT OF THE MONTH

Lewis Haskell, First President of NHHS, donated his land and buildings to the Historical Society. When Lewis died on April 26th, 2016, his wife Ida wrote the following obituary/biographical sketch in his memory. NHHS is pleased to share Ida's thoughts with Lewis's many friends and admirers.

Lewis Judson Haskell was born March 12, 1920 in the old Eleazar Crabtree house at Crabtree Point. He was the son of James A. Haskell and Ethel Thornton. His father, James A. Haskell was born on Deer Isle and came to North Haven in his teens to work on the Herzog estate at Crabtree Point. Lewis’s maternal grandfather, Lewis Thornton was a Welch gardener whom Herzog brought with his family to Maine as he wanted English gardens. Lewis's grandmother, Jane Hughes was Welsh English and they lived in Gladestry, Wales. The Thornton family came to America in the steamer Ivernia. Because Herzog was a German Jew, North Haven people thought he was a spy and distrusted him. Herzog was really a camouflage expert for the government, but he enjoyed teasing the islanders. He had many carriage roads at Crabtree Point and put posts with lanterns along the roads. At night, he would take his employees and walk the roads and change the lights. Some island folks would see the lights change and thought he was signaling but he was teasing them. Herzog loved to fool. Lewis’s grandfather Thornton was indentured to Herzog for five years. When his grandfather Thornton left North Haven, he took the family to Wisconsin, where he had relatives who worked for the railroad repairing the tracks. Lewis's mother, Ethel and her sister Gertrude stayed behind on North Haven. Gertrude married Hubert Grant and resided at the Grant Farm. Ethel met Lewis's father, James Haskell at the Herzog estate in North Haven and they fell in love.The house where Lewis was born was the oldest on North Haven and two families lived in it. One workman lived on the first floor, and Lewis's parents on second floor. Lewis’s maternal grandmother, Jane Hughes Thornton was at his birth. Because of very cold weather, it was hard for the Doctor to get there.In the 1929 stock crash, Herzog lost his money and had to move. Lewis's family moved to Bartlett's Harbor and settled on the George Wooster farm, which needed much work done on it. Lewis’s father lost all of his savings when his bank failed so they were very poor. His father insisted Lewis stop by each day after school to help an old lady who lived alone. She was Aunt Eunice who was a Leadbetter and proud of it. Increase Leadbetter had 3 wives and 20 or 30 children so all the islanders have Leadbetter blood. Once Aunt Eunice told Lewis it was too bad he wouldn't amount to anything because he had no Leadbetter blood! Lewis wanted to go in the military service. The island doctor, Victor Shields told Lewis that he should be in the Navy. Dr. Shields had an IOU that a psychologist who worked there owed him and Dr. Shields told Lewis if he saw this doctor’s name on the door to go and give the note to help him. Lewis saw the door and stepped out of the long line. He got in the room and the doctor asked what he wanted. Lewis said, "I've got a note from Dr. Victor Shields for you." The doctor said, "Vic Shields, how is he?" and then read the note Lewis gave him. The doctor said, "I can't help you. You have too many things the matter” but then took Lewis's paper, stamped a lot of things on it and told him "Now get back in line and keep your mouth shut". When Lewis got to the head of the line they looked at his paper and said, "You are supposed to be in the Navy line.” So they took him and he got sworn into the Navy. The next day, he was in a room with others and down front was a desk. An officer said if anyone had a certain number to come forward and Lewis had one. An officer said "You are going to be able to sleep with your wife tonight." Lewis said, "I don't want to." The officer replied, "The Navy can't use you. I don't know who put all these wavers on your papers but the Navy can't use you. Too many things wrong." He couldn't get Lewis to sign. Later, when Lewis got ready to get out after the war, the same doctor was there and remembered him. "You made a liar out of me and survived". Lewis was in the Navy as a hospital corpsman from December 1943-1945 when his hospital ship Tranquil and other ships were off the coast of Japan waiting to land and the bomb was dropped and the war ended! After the war, Lewis joined the reserves and was called back in the Korean War. He was stationed at the submarine base in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The base was going to use radioactive material and had to know the Rh factor of all the 12,000 workers. Lewis and two other corpsmen were given the job of testing all the workers. They did several a day and had regular duties at the dispensary. Lewis wanted to learn as much as he could so he could help North Haven as they didn't always have a doctor. The Vinalhaven doctor had to cover for both islands. Lewis could see a patient and tell the Vinalhaven doctor to see him if he should come up. While he worked in Portsmouth, Lewis’s wife Ida and two little sons lived in a small camp in Kittery, Maine. During his time off, they enjoyed some trips to the White Mountains. After 14 months in Portsmouth, Lewis and Ida came home to North Haven. On the island, Lewis was very active. He was the only police officer in the 1950s and earned $50 per month. A lot of Vinalhaveners came up to dances and he was the only one to handle them. The police in Rockland told him not to carry a gun. If he got in a mess, he had to be quick and outwit them; they taught him some tricks. He had a lot of frustrating times, but always came out on top.Lewis worked for Mrs. Hope Felton on her estate at Iron Point for several years. Mr. Felton was vice president of Revere Copper and Brass and had no say at the estate. Lewis was caretaker to Mrs. Felton and he was her boatman and he enjoyed it there. She was quick tempered and he liked to outwit her. They became very good friends. Her daughter, Jennifer Felton Cabot, was 9 years old when Lewis started there and she had no playmates so she chased Lewis around. They became very close friends and he was always ready to help her when she needed him.Lewis loved North Haven and he involved himself in everything. When the town wanted to sell Mullens Head to an out of town buyer, Ira Curtis and Lewis canvassed the island to save it for the town because islanders had no access to beaches. They were successful and now we have a great town park. At Pulpit Harbor, there was no place for islanders to land boats. Summer people owned all the land and fishermen had to use hauling lines on shore to reach the boats. Lewis was able to get a lease to the present parking area and get donations to put a dock on the piers that were there. Now the islanders had access to the beautiful harbor. When Mr. Thomas S. Lamont left $50,000 to the town for islanders, Lewis wanted the town to have a community building and $35,000 was approved. The Sheridan Corporation was given the job and Lewis helped cut costs by also getting volunteers. When finished a metal plaque was put on the door, the plaque was scratched and Lamont wanted to get out of it. The balance was turned over to a trust fund and others could donate. Seward Beacom, a town resident, had a new plaque made, which has lasted. The town was very proud of the building and many activities were held there. Lewis was an active, lifetime member of the North Haven Baptist Church and helped save the old Pulpit Harbor Church. He was a member of the Grange. He helped start the Historical Society after old documents were thrown away at the town dump and antique dealers were carting off items and cheating island people. Lewis built a small museum to house his collections and later added more rooms. Later, he gave the building and collection of antiques to the historical society. He was a selectman several times. He was always ready to try and solve a problem in town and usually succeeded.Lewis always had a boat and took others on day trips. His two sons learned to run boats early and by 12 years old had their own boats and lobster traps. They were very independent. Lewis was a storyteller and folks gathered at their home Sunday morning to hear them and enjoy their goodies. He and Ida put together a collection of his true short stories and published them in a book Cold Milk and Apple Pie. Lewis received the Boston Post Cane for the town's oldest citizen. A few years ago his eyesight faded; he could read no more and his memory left. We had to leave North Haven; we couldn't take care of ourselves and came to Quarry Hill in Camden. Our home and land will go to the Historical Society when we die. We had a good life and always did things together. Lewis loved North Haven and people and always tried to help when he could. He was a problem solver and knew the ancestors of all. His ashes will be sprinkled at Bartlett's Harbor by his family and he has a memorial stone at Fuller Cemetery. There will be no funeral. Donations may be made in his memory to the North Haven Historical Society.

North Haven Historical Society Archives Center

Archives Center Library

The North Haven Historical Society Archives Center welcomes the use of its collections by historians, writers, educators, students, genealogists and others interested in the history of the Penobscot Bay area and North Haven in particular. Many one-of-a-kind materials about the island's history and its people are available to enhance your visit to the Center. The Society works to collect and preserve these collections and we have instituted policies and procedures below to protect our holdings for the future.

AccessThe Archives Center is open to members and to the general public free of charge. The Library is open for your browsing or research. Archival materials must always be retrieved by staff. Fragile materials, including original photographs, maps, documents and newspapers may be restricted at the discretion of the reference staff. Archival and manuscript materials may not be photocopied, scanned or photographed without permission. Scanning and photocopying will be handled by the staff. Each visitor is encouraged to sign our Research Registration Book each time you visit the Center.

Archives Center PoliciesWe ask that you work quietly and cooperatively with those around you. Please leave your cell phone in the lobby or set it to silent mode if you bring it into the library. Cell phone conversations should take place in the lobby. Do not use your cell phone to photograph materials without permission. The staff can provide wireless internet connection but is not able to provide technical assistance.

Collection PoliciesOur collections do not circulate and no materials may leave the building. We discourage accepting any materials "on loan."

Photocopies, Photography and ScansPhotocopying is limited. We reserve the right to restrict photocopying of any material in our holdings. Many of our books and other collections may be photocopied. The fees are as follows: Black and White text or photo, 8.5x11:$.25. Black and White text or photo, 11x17: $.50. Color text or photo, 8.5x11: $.50. Photo-printing (on glossy premium photo paper): 8.5x11: $3.00. Scans made on request shall have a permanent line of text acknowledging that the source of the archive is the North Haven Historical Society.

Research RequestsResearch Requests are always welcome! For simple questions or verifications we have no charge. For in-depth research we charge $35/hr. We have a Research Request Form we can email/mail you and we will talk about the question before any charges are decided upon. Please feel free to use our Research Request/Contact form on the "Contact Us" page of our website and we can help you start your research!